Chert

Product Introduction

1. Definition: Chert is a conversational AI platform and API infrastructure that enables businesses to build, deploy, and manage iMessage agents for B2C and B2B communication. Technically, it operates at the intersection of API-as-a-Service (APIaaS), conversational AI, and business messaging.
2. Core Value Proposition: Chert exists to provide businesses with a scalable, high-trust channel for customer engagement by leveraging Apple's native iMessage protocol. Its primary value is dramatically increasing open and reply rates for customer service, lead capture, and outbound sales workflows compared to traditional SMS or email, by delivering messages as a personal, blue-bubble iMessage.

Main Features

1. Authentic iMessage API: Chert provides a developer API that sends and receives messages over Apple's iMessage network, not as SMS. This results in the genuine blue-bubble user experience, verified sender profiles, and end-to-end encryption. How it works: Businesses integrate via Chert's REST API; the platform manages the connection to iMessage infrastructure, handling identity verification and protocol management to ensure delivery as a native peer-to-peer message.
2. Conversational AI Agent Builder: The platform allows users to configure AI-powered iMessage agents without extensive coding. How it works: Users define a system prompt, tone, and desired workflows (e.g., FAQ answering, appointment booking). The AI agent then autonomously handles inbound conversations and executes outbound sequences, maintaining context and personalization within the iMessage thread.
3. Cross-Platform CRM Integrations & Webhooks: Chert features built-in integrations with major CRM and sales platforms like HubSpot, Salesforce, and Close.io. How it works: The platform syncs conversation history, lead data, and engagement events bi-directionally. It also exposes webhooks for every message event (sent, delivered, read, replied), enabling custom data pipelines and real-time updates in internal tools like Slack.

Problems Solved

1. Pain Point: Abysmally low engagement rates on traditional cold outbound channels (email, A2P SMS) due to spam filters, carrier filtering, and channel saturation.
2. Target Audience: Specifically, Go-to-Market (GTM) teams including Sales Development Representatives (SDRs), growth marketers, and customer success managers at tech companies, real estate agencies, and service-based businesses. Secondary users are developers and product managers needing to embed messaging into applications.
3. Use Cases: Essential for inbound lead qualification via iMessage, AI-driven customer support resolving issues directly in the message thread, automated appointment scheduling and rescheduling (e.g., for healthcare, services), and personalized lifecycle messaging (onboarding, win-back campaigns).

Unique Advantages

1. Differentiation: Unlike Twilio or other CPaaS providers that offer A2P (Application-to-Person) SMS—which is carrier-regulated, often filtered, and appears as a green-bubble business text—Chert delivers P2P (Person-to-Person) iMessage. This bypasses carrier filters and lands in the same trusted inbox as messages from friends and family, leading to categorically higher open rates.
2. Key Innovation: Chert's managed infrastructure for iMessage deliverability at scale. The technical innovation lies in responsibly rotating and warming sender identities (Apple IDs) and capping volume per identity to stay beneath Apple's anti-abuse heuristics, providing a stable "iMessage infrastructure" that is notoriously difficult for businesses to maintain in-house.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. Is Chert using real iMessage or just SMS branded as iMessage? Chert uses the real Apple iMessage protocol. Messages are sent and received as native, blue-bubble iMessages with end-to-end encryption, falling back to SMS/RCS only if the recipient is not on an Apple device.
2. How does iMessage deliverability compare to business SMS for cold outreach? iMessage deliverability through Chert avoids the carrier-level filtering and 10DLC regulations that plague A2P SMS. Because it's a P2P channel tied to an Apple ID, it enjoys significantly higher deliverability and open rates, which Chert reports as 10x the reply rate of cold email.
3. Can I build an AI chatbot for iMessage with Chert? Yes, Chert's core functionality is building and deploying conversational AI agents on iMessage. You configure the AI's prompt and tone, and it can autonomously handle conversations for customer support, lead qualification, or appointment booking directly within iMessage threads.
4. How does Chert integrate with my existing CRM like Salesforce or HubSpot? Chert offers native bi-directional integrations with popular CRMs. It can write back full conversation histories, lead scores, and engagement events. For custom setups, it provides a full REST API and webhooks to pipe message data into any internal system or database.